posted at 2:01 pm on August 14, 2012 by Ed Morrissey

As Barack Obama and his allies unleash their full Mediscaring fury, perhaps it’s helpful to recall this moment in 2005. George W. Bush proclaimed a mandate to fix Social Security after the 2004 election, which had Democrats insisting even then that Social Security didn’t need reform, and that it was safe for another 20 years. One Democrat in particular questioned the reform priorities of Bush, joining a few Republicans who had the same concern. Why not tackle Medicare reform instead, as it was by far the largest driver of unfunded and irrational future liabilities? Buzzfeed’s Andrew Kaczynski makes the find:

Democrats, let by Harry Reid, successfully demagogued Bush on Social Security reform — and seven years later, the SSA funds are running in the red. Meanwhile, that backbencher won the next presidential election. Did he offer Medicare reform to deal with the massive liabilities building up in the system? Why, no — and now he’s demonizing Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan for daring to propose specific plans for reform.

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It just goes to show how most politicians say one thing and do another. What’s even more ironic and comical is how the guy supposed to change the climate of Washington is the mascot for this type of behavior.

Except according to Sununu he cut $700 billion from Medicare. Isn’t that reform?

red_herring on August 14, 2012 at 2:07 PM

Open letter to management:

Can we please upgrade our troll crew? I mean this isn’t even entertaining it’s so inane. Perhaps a signing bonus or some other incentive to attract individuals who can at least string together a few coherent thoughts.

The Republicans are starting to make a big deal out of the huge 700 billion in cuts on Medicare. But the message is very muddled. Sometimes they even say millions in stead of billions. They are totally ignoring that the Democrats are making out like Ryans plan does not start till 2015 at the earliest and that under Obamas plan Medicare would have gone bankrupt by then where are the Medicare went bankrupt because Obama did nothing ads or responses. Come on at least try to fight for Americans Establishment Republicans. You completely control the convention. You have locked out the Conservative Base. So at least fight this fight. Tell the truth. Ryan will save Medicare Obama will Bankrupt it. With Ryan you get health insurance with Obama you get nothing. Obama really does want to kill you literally with his death panels that deny coverage for Hip Replacements that means you die within a year just like in England. Educate Americans to what the ultimate plan is under Universal Health Care.

But no. Establishment Republicans do not want anything different in reality than Obama. Establishment Republicans only want to enrich different people. Sometimes it seems that they really want the Democrats to have control like this year when no real attempt is made to win the election.

Ryan and Obama both cap growth at 0.5%. You can argue that the number is impossible to get under Obama’s proposal, but if it were to work (again, it’s highly debatable) it’d have the same effect as Ryan’s plan. I don’t see how you can claim that’s not reform.

O’s a scuzz. But more than ever imo in this case we have to concentrate on the actual issue of the proposed Medicare reform, not so much on O’s bad character. Sure, talk about O’s character and deceptions, but don’t concentrate on that as far as Medicare goes. And I say again if you haven’t seen it already watch and share and promote via your blogs this 4 minute video where Ryan lays the issue down in very Republican friendly terms: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJIC7kEq6kw&info=RyanMedicare
A very interesting point about that video, those “red bureaucrats” as far as I can tell represent the Obamacare intervention. We have the grand “theory of everything” potential to tie Obamacare inextricably up with Ryan’s proposal. The question: is it Ryan’s reform, or a govt takeover and lines for inferior service and govt $ being skewed more and more into substandard Medicaid… as Medicare shrivels?

But no. Establishment Republicans do not want anything different in reality than Obama. Establishment Republicans only want to enrich different people. Sometimes it seems that they really want the Democrats to have control like this year when no real attempt is made to win the election.

Steveangell on August 14, 2012 at 2:28 PM

Yeah well Mediscare is a tool tiger and Barry’s a real fan of “make the live up to their own rules”…

I plan to make him pay for his lies you can join in, get out of the way, or help the democrats….

Because most of us aren’t interested in engaging in an argument about ‘reform’ simply for the sake of saying that something was altered, and thus, calling it ‘reformed’.

We are arguing for MEANINGFUL, sensible, effective, QUALITY, reform.

Reform that lowers the cost of health care insurance AND lowers the cost of health care SERVICES… thus making more AFFORDABLE health care insurance AND health care services available to more people.

We argue that doing this WHILE saving the safety net programs for future generations is imperative.

We argue that making these changes through free market reforms that drive up competition while driving down costs…thus increasing accessibility to everyone…. and lowering the cost to, and involvement of, the federal government is vital.

Simply saying that something has been changed and calling it reform isn’t good enough.

And this, to me, seems to be the depressing reality of politics now-a-days.

Paul Ryan’s budget increases spending every year (except ’13 and ’14..wooooo). This is after the 800 billion stimuls got worked into the budget in ’09.

In other words, this “hyper-extremist” budget doesn’t even begin to address the fiscal crisis. We can’t promise jobs and economic recovery when government will continue to siphon all of the growth potential from the private sector. We will only see another burgeoning middle-class when the lion’s share of profit stays with its citizens, and that’s not happening.

When the Republican’s big talking point is that it’s actually preserving government spending, you know it’s lost.

Because most of us aren’t interested in engaging in an argument about ‘reform’ simply for the sake of saying that something was altered, and thus, calling it ‘reformed’.

We are arguing for MEANINGFUL, sensible, effective, QUALITY, reform.

Reform that lowers the cost of health care insurance AND lowers the cost of health care SERVICES… thus making more AFFORDABLE health care insurance AND health care services available to more people.

We argue that doing this WHILE saving the safety net programs for future generations is imperative.

We argue that making these changes through free market reforms that drive up competition while driving down costs…thus increasing accessibility to everyone…. and lowering the cost to, and involvement of, the federal government is vital.

Simply saying that something has been changed and calling it reform isn’t good enough.

thatsafactjack on August 14, 2012 at 2:40 PM

Fair point. But I don’t think you can deny that he made major changes to Medicare in an effort to make it more sustainable. The entitlement system as a whole is a different matter, but again, Obama and the democrats actually believe that Ocare will make them more sustainable. They did reform Medicare and entitlements. Whether they will work is a wholly different matter.

He has been doing his “Bless his heart” best to do that for months now… I think he deserves one of those little plastic “I showed up” trophies, don’t you?

SWalker on August 14, 2012 at 2:41 PM

they KNOW they are cornered they are reduced to trying to bray “but BOTH SIDES ARE THE SAME!” well no we’re not the GOP never took 716 billion and rising from a sliding scale to hide the true costs of Obamacare….

We didn’t build that democrats YOU DID!

so yeah SWalker this is it it is time to peel off the union worker maybe and time to speak to EVERY American about this problem and have something almost all can agree on-politicians cannot be trusted not to steal that 25% of your check they call “retirement planning”….

and the other fella is now an official operator on ST”O” and “Operation Good Job”….

Fair point. But I don’t think you can deny that he made major changes to Medicare in an effort to make it more sustainable. The entitlement system as a whole is a different matter, but again, Obama and the democrats actually believe that Ocare will make them more sustainable. They did reform Medicare and entitlements. Whether they will work is a wholly different matter.

red_herring on August 14, 2012 at 2:50 PM

Taking 716 Billion from funding for future liabilities in a program that is funded by involuntary withholding to fund a new program that further penalizes and coerces Americans into enriching private businesses in a mad dash effort to HIDE the true cost of Obamacare is theft plain and simple.

Ogabe has entwined the two programs to the point Medicare a program all have paid into their whole working lives is a defacto piggybank for GoofwadCare, you want to make the argument that magical “potential future savings” is worth putting the current and near future coverage of the people who were taxed at 25% of their wage is a good idea YOU TRY TO MAKE THAT SALE.

My Reply is why Obarka is terrified and it shows…

in 1967 democrats said by 1990 Medicare would cost 9 billion, the cost was 63 billion…..

what happened to “savings exerted by government control of Senior care”?

Yeah exactly….everyone knows politicians broke the two main programs but hey RH trust him “I figured it out THIS TIME IT WILL WORK!”

Obama took a stupid move by politicians leaving IOU in Medicare and Social Security and made it a matter of course to shift funds from an already damaged piggybank.

My ground is solid sooner or later you lose…

you may eke this one out but people my age and lower ALREADY hate SS and medicare….just wait until the tax penalties from Ocare hit….

if you guys are having your marxist revolution and eke out a win you better get to work because the pushback to your idiocy will flatten your power for 12-20 years when EVERYONE is HURT BY YOUR FRAUD.

I absolutely can argue that he did NOT make those changes to ‘make Medicare more sustainable’.

Obama’s plan from start to finish was to put an end to Medicare and implement a single payer system. Even his own people admit this to be the case and hailed Obamacare as ‘as first step toward single payer’.

IF you don’t understand that, you are poorly informed. If you do understand that, and trying to argue the point anyway, you’re simply trying to harangue people with pointless argument.

The democRATS will never and I mean never vote for any kind of a reform on SS and Medicare.
Ryans plan gives younger people a chance to GET THE MONEY (Vouchers)and buy their own healthcare or stay on Medicare which GOV.doles out.
Bushs plan was to allow younger people to control their own payments to SS under their own name, good plan.
Now here’s the kicker with these plans THE DEMS. WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO GET THEIR STICKY FINGERS ON THESE FUNDS THAT NOW BELONG TO THE TAXPAYER.
Don’t forget it was the DEMS, either Kennedy or Johnson that took the SS trustfund and made it part of the General Fund to be spend on any thing. Giving the trustfund worthless IOUs
A very simple explaination.

I am serious. Do not know how many times it was said Ryan also cuts that 711 billion. Response was Mitt has a different plan.

Well why are they not united on one plan?

It is probably not to late for Mitt to actually produce a solid plan that could win this election. But so far he has been all over the place. If he has a way to save entitlements he should come out with it. The baby boomers understand that they will never see Social Security unless this is fixed. Those younger never expect to see a penny of Social Security.

Obamas plan is Universal Care like in England and the EU. Cradle to grave entitlements. He has no way to pay for it.

So therefore we need to vote for Obama so we can impeach him, right? Isn’t that your argument?

changer1701 on August 14, 2012 at 3:20 PM

Yes we need to impeach Obama.

So far the Republicans have wimped out and done almost nothing to try to admonish this wana be Dictator. I figure they will have to in a second term.

But Romney sure has given me no reason to vote for him. Now he says he is not for the Ryan Plan. So we have a VP with a different plan than the President. Insane. They should have hashed this out before the announcement.

Bark intoduced another retarded captive pool to the system only he enslaved us to private companies this time under penalty of tax.

Why do you think I had a laugh for about 6 hours when I figured out Romney’s angle?

BOOM you know those disaffected kids you sold the idea you gave FREE care to?

Yeah Democrats I am gonna have them to when they have to start paying in in this economy or suffer YOU taxing ‘em…..

These college kids working in 20,000 a year jobs are gonna be angry at the penalty and I am gonna laugh my butt off at watching you dance about how forcing a 23 year old kid to carry insurance so your aids patient buddies can get their pills cheaper was “brilliant”….

First… there is only ONE HOUSE in our legislature ( congress). That is the HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

We have a BICAMERAL legislative branch. Bicameral means two chambers.
NOT two ‘houses’.

When the Obamacare vote was forced through, in the dead of night on Christmas Eve, the measure had been passed in the Senate and sent to the HOUSE of REPRESENTATIVES for a vote.

The reason that the legislation passed was because THE DEMOCRATS HAD A MAJORITY IN THE SENATE AND IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Obamacare only got one Republican vote. Total.

The Democrats used RECONCILIATION in the Senate to pass Obamacare, thus shattering the BYRD RULE regarding the use of reconciliation for anything other than tax and budgetary matters.

In the House of Representatives, Pelosi dredged up every arcane and nefarious tactic she could to make sure that the Democrats voted lock-step for Obamacare. The “Pro life Democrats’ were hold outs. Many of the Blue Dogs were hold outs. She twisted arms to the point of breaking to force them to vote with the majority.

She even threatened to use ‘The Slaughter Solution’ named for Representative Louise Slaughter, whereby a bill was DEEMED as passed, without a vote of the entire chamber, if the majority ( in this case and at that time, the Democrats) decided that it was passed. This tactic was also known as ‘Deem and Pass’. The GOP referred to it as “DEMON PASS”.

The public outcry was so strong that Pelosi lost her nerve and didn’t use it. Instead, she leaned on the ‘Pro life Democrats’ and the ‘Blue Dog Democrats’ until they caved and voted with the majority. It was said you could hear their arms breaking throughout D.C.

In the 2010 elections, the Blue Dog Democrats became extinct. The “Pro life Democrats” had been proven to have never existed in the first place and now we hear nothing of them at all. Moderate Democrats also took a beating. The GOP took a historic number of House seats. Over 60, and with them, the majority in the House of Representatives.

It is common to say both houses even though you are right one is the Senate one is the House.

The Senate took a different bill and completely changed it into the ACA bill. They passed it but then Scott Brown won. Plan had been for the House to pass a bill then combine the two but that would no longer work.

Poloski came up with the idea to Deem it having passed and pass a bill to get it done. But gave up on that plan.

She then did as you said sort of. She got the House to pass the Senate bill in total no changes. Thus ACA became law but the House still wanted their changes so they abused reconcillation and passed a bill under that which the Senate then passed. Obama Signed two different bills to make ACA the law we now have.

You missed Obamas EO on Abortion which was a farce and as you said led to the last few Bluedog Democrats being voted out.

Fair point. But I don’t think you can deny that he made major changes to Medicare in an effort to make it more sustainable. The entitlement system as a whole is a different matter, but again, Obama and the democrats actually believe that Ocare will make them more sustainable. They did reform Medicare and entitlements. Whether they will work is a wholly different matter.